Genetics is the scientific study of genes, heredity and variation in living things. It deals with how certain qualities or traits are passed from parents to offspring as a result of changes in DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid) sequence. The transfer of materials which lead to heredity and variation occurs during reproduction in living things.
A gene is a segment of DNA that contains instructions for building one or more molecules that help the body work. Genes are heredity units situated in the chromosomes that transmit a character (trait) from a parent to offspring.
Those who study genetics are called geneticists. They are interested in how offspring resemble or differ from their parents.
Genetics as a scientific discipline stemmed from the work of Gregor Mendel in the middle of the 19th century. Mendel suspected that traits were inherited as discrete units, and although he knew nothing of the physical or chemical nature of genes at that time, his units became the basis for the development of the present understanding of heredity. All present research in the genetics can be traced back to Mendel’s discovery of the laws governing the inheritance of traits. Mendel is known as the father of genetics.
